What Makes a Good Christmas?
by Amerith
Summary: It's Christmas Eve and Duo and Wufei are alone. Wufei learns some interesting things about Duo. 5x2, TWT, angst, sap, and all that good stuff (sorry, I'm bad at writing these)


"....." is for speaking. '.........' is for thoughts. /// is for flashbacks.  
  
A/N: I wrote this in April. Christmas is faaaaaaar away. XDD;; Anyways, I just felt like writing a 5x2 fic and this idea popped in my head. Sorry the title kind of sucks. I'm bad at coming up with titles.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
"Maxwell, we need to replenish our supplies," Wufei said, looking through the fridge.  
  
Duo looked at Wufei. "It's Christmas Eve, which means crowds. I thought you hated crowds."  
  
"Well, I hate starving to death even more. For all we know we could get caved in or something here. I'd really rather not resort to cannibalism, Maxwell."  
  
"I'd eat you before you got a chance to eat me," Duo said, sticking out his tongue.  
  
Wufei rolled his eyes. "It's getting late. We'd better leave if we want to get back before dark."  
  
Duo and Wufei left the safe house and got into the car, making there way to the nearest town.  
  
Once in town, they parked the car and headed towards the local grocery shop. Wufei glanced at Duo who was looking at all the Christmas lights with large eyes. Wufei shook his head. "You look like you've never seen Christmas before."  
  
Duo looked down at his feet. "Christmas was different where I came from," he replied, a strained look on his face.  
  
Wufei blinked and opened his mouth to ask Duo what he meant, but Duo had already run ahead into the grocery store. Wufei frowned and followed Duo inside. He found a basket and spotted Duo, who was wandering down aisles aimlessly. Wufei shook his head and picked up a few packets of Ramen.  
  
Duo walked down aisles, not really paying attention to where he was going. He was thinking about what he has said earlier. It was strange of him to blurt something out like that, in front of Wufei of all people. Wufei was only second to Heero Yuy in the "do not show you have feelings" department. Duo sighed. "Christmas....," he murmured to himself.  
  
Christmas on many parts of L2 wasn't what you would describe as beautiful, cheerful, or merry. It wasn't something you would stick on a postcard and send home to mom and dad. The streets Duo grew up on were always dark and un-inviting. Christmas only seemed to make them worse because you knew there were supposed to be Christmas lights hanging, children laughing, and people out buying presents to give to their family and friends. He had read the Christmas books. He knew what Christmas was supposed to be like that. But it wasn't like that there. It was just dark, cold, and dirty.  
  
Duo smiled a little as he remembered celebrating Christmas at the Maxwell church. It was the only Christmas he ever celebrated, so it stuck out vividly in his memory. They hadn't had any money so a Christmas tree, decorations, and presents were pretty much out of the question. But they still smiled and laughed and had a wonderful time.  
  
Duo stopped and stared at cookie mix on the shelf before him.  
  
"Cookies......she would always make....cookies."  
  
Sister Helen always made sure to bake cookies on Christmas Eve. Duo closed his eyes, remembering the warm sweet-ness as he bit into one of Sister Helen's cookies. That was the most wonderful thing he had ever tasted. Not because they were made with anything special, but because SHE had made them. That was what made them taste so wonderful. His eyes opened and he stared at the cookie mix in his hands. Grinning, he ran off to find Wufei who was in the meat section.  
  
Wufei noticed Duo had approached him. He was debating on whether or not to buy a ham. It was costly, but then again...it was Christmas. "Do you think we should get this ham?" Wufei asked.  
  
Duo stared at him strangely. "Why would you want to get ham, Wufei? Meat's kind of expensive."  
  
"Well, it's tradition to buy a ham for Christmas you know."  
  
"Really? I didn't know that," said Duo. "But hey, you're in charge of the money so get it if you want."  
  
Wufei frowned. He was surprised that Duo didn't know about ham on Christmas. Wufei figured that since Duo was American he would know all about Christmas traditions. "Well, you're right. It is too expensive," Wufei said, putting away the ham.  
  
He eyed the cart and noticed cookie mix in it. "Maxwell. How many times must I reprimand you for buying snacks?" Wufei sighed. "They're a waste of money."  
  
Duo looked upset. "But I...I really want these, Wufei. They're very important to me."  
  
"No. Put them back. Real food is what's important," Wufei sternly said.  
  
Duo sighed and took out the cookies, heading back to where he found them. Wufei sighed and headed towards the check-out counter. He waited in line and watched as Duo left the store. 'Wufei you idiot....' he mentally chastised himself.  
  
Wufei met Duo outside the store and they began making their way to the car. Duo was digging around in his pockets when his face suddenly lit up with glee.  
  
"Hey, Wufei. I just remembered I have some of my money left. I'm going to go back and get those cookies so just wait here, okay?"  
  
"Well hurry up then. We don't have all night," Wufei told Duo. Wufei raised an eyebrow when he saw Duo stop in front of something. He looked closer and saw that it was two small, dirty children holding out cups for money. Wufei was surprised to see Duo give all the money he had to the children. Duo returned to where Wufei was standing and gave him a lop-sided grin.  
  
"Guess I won't be getting cookies after all," he said in a light tone, with veiled sad-ness underneath.  
  
"Maxw...Duo," Wufei started. "Why did you give away all your money to two kids you don't even know?"  
  
Duo's voice took on a somewhat bitter tone. "You wouldn't understand, Wufei."  
  
Wufei blinked and opened his mouth to say something, but shut it and continued making his way to the car.  
  
Once they got back to the safe house, Wufei started putting away groceries and Duo went up to his room. Wufei wondered why Duo had been acting so strange all day. Sometimes he seemed happy, almost nostalgic and other times he seemed mopey and distant. 'Like a woman with a mood swing,' he thought with a mix of distaste and humor. He sighed and continued putting away groceries. 'I expected Duo to be "high on Christmas" since he always seems so easily excited.'  
  
Duo lay on his bed in the darkened room. He stared up at the ceiling, fingering the small gold cross that hung around his neck. It wasn't real gold of course, but Duo thought more of this cross then even the most expensive piece of jewelry in the world. He sighed and thought back to Christmas day at the Maxwell church. Father Maxwell had presented him with a small box and Duo had been incredibly excited. He had never received a present before and didn't expect to receive one this year because of the financial state of the church. He had opened the present delicately, savoring the moment. Inside the box had been the gold cross.  
  
///Father Maxwell takes out the cross and fastens it around Duo's neck.  
  
"Well, Duo, what do you think?"  
  
"It's wonderful, Father. I really....uhm....well, I really appreciate you always putting up with me and for giving me a present and caring about me," Duo stammered out, blushing at his show of emotion.  
  
Father Maxwell chuckled. "The pleasure is all mine, Duo. You've brought us so much joy these past few months."  
  
Duo grinned and scuffled his foot against the ground.  
  
"Do you know what this cross means, Duo?" asked Father Maxwell, holding the cross between his fingers.  
  
Duo shook his head. "not really."  
  
"Well, this cross is a reminder that Christ died for our sins."  
  
Duo looked at Father Maxwell with a funny look on his face. "If Christ died for our sins, then does that mean we can do whatever we want and not get in trouble for it?"  
  
Father Maxwell chuckled again and released the cross. "Having your sins forgiven doesn't mean you can do bad things and not get in trouble. It only means if you ask God for forgiveness, He will grant it to you. But humans aren't so quick to forgive, Duo, so you should try to stay out of too much trouble. Also, God wouldn't appreciate you always sinning, especially after he was so kind as to forgive you."  
  
Father Maxwell left the room and Duo picked up his cross, staring at it. "I don't believe in God, but I do believe in Father Maxwell. This cross will be my reminder that Father Maxwell gave me a second chance and took me in, forgiving me of my past and accepting me with all of my faults."///  
  
Duo was brought back to reality by the smell of something downstairs. He walked down the stairs and was shocked to find Wufei in the kitchen, making cookies!  
  
"Wufei!"  
  
Wufei jumped and nearly dropped the cookie pan. He put the pan on the stove-top and looked down at his feet, embarrassed.  
  
"Why'd you buy the cookies, Wufei?" Duo asked, a pleased smirk on his face.  
  
"Well I....I couldn't stand to see that hurt look on your face, so I bought these after you left the store," Wufei quietly admitted. He sighed and glanced at the cookies. "I'm a horrible cookie maker." He held out the pan for Duo to see, the cookies fairly burnt.  
  
Duo laughed and took a cookie, biting into it and chewing thoughtfully for a moment before swallowing. "Well, how do they taste?" Wufei hopefully inquired.  
  
"They taste just terrible, but I love them," Duo replied, grinning.  
  
Wufei made a face. "How can you love something that tastes awful?"  
  
"Well, I'll love these cookies no matter how awful they taste because I know they were made with love."  
  
Wufei blushed for an instant and grabbed a cookie, biting into it. He laughed loudly. "These ARE terrible!" he exclaimed. "But you know....I'm very pleased because this is the first time I've ever made cookies."  
  
Wufei and Duo retreated to the living room and sat in front of the fire. Wufei sat on the couch and Duo sat on the floor, leaning against the couch.  
  
"I'm sorry that we don't have a tree or decorations or presents. All we have are burnt cookies. Not much of a Christmas, huh?" Wufei half-jokingly said. He blinked and noticed Duo had that nostalgic look on his face. "What are you thinking about, Duo?"  
  
"I've only celebrated Christmas one other time and it was the most wonderful experience I have ever had. On that Christmas, we had nothing, but it was so wonderful because we had each other and that made us the happiest people in the world. Just...being with one another on Christmas was better then any present we could give."  
  
"I'm very happy right now just being with you...," Wufei said. He quickly blushed and closed his mouth, cursing himself for being so blunt.  
  
Wufei looked at Duo and saw a tear fall down his cheek, quickly brushed away. "Why...why are you crying, Duo?" Wufei hesitantly asked.  
  
Duo frowned and got up from the floor, practically running upstairs to his room. Wufei, concerned, heads up to his room. He opened the door to find Duo on his bed, fingering the cross he is always seen wearing. "Duo, what's wrong? Please tell me."  
  
"Sorry..." Duo murmured. "It's just...that was the only Christmas I had before now and sometimes I get sad just thinking about it."  
  
"Would you....would you tell me about that Christmas?" Wufei asked, sitting down besides Duo on the bed.  
  
Duo sighed. "I was an orphan, living on the streets of L2 until I was taken in by Father Maxwell and Sister Helen of the Maxwell church. We were always so poor. I would get teased a lot because I smelled bad. We didn't have a lot of water to spare, so baths were scarce. I remember one time I got into a fight with some kids at school because they told me I smelled like a sewer. Sister Helen held me and she told me that I smelled just fine to her." Duo laughed. "I know now that she was lying about that, but it...made me feel better at the time. She always made you feel better, just by smiling at you."  
  
Duo paused for a moment, but then started to speak again.  
  
"That Christmas we didn't have anything. No presents or tree or nothing. But I remember Sister Helen had made cookies. They weren't special. Not by someone else's viewpoint. But I remember how wonderful they tasted, because she made them. They were the most delicious things I have ever tasted."  
  
"That Christmas, Father Maxwell gave me this cross. He told me that it represented Christ dieing so we would be forgiven of our sins. I didn't believe in God so I decided that this cross would represent Father Maxwell forgiving me of my sins by taking me in and caring for me, even though I was such a troublesome child. More importantly, it reminded me that I had someone who loved me enough to do that."  
  
"But then......they left me. They both died on me. You know about the Maxwell Church Tragedy right? Well, I'm the lone survivor of that."  
  
Wufei's eyes widened. "You...oh, Duo...I had no idea."  
  
Duo was surprised to feel Wufei's arms surround him, pulling him into his chest.  
  
"Wufei.....Wufei, why are you being so nice to me?"  
  
"Duo, I want you to have more happy Christmas memories with me."  
  
"Wufei....," Duo murmured, eyes tearing up.  
  
Wufei surprised Duo once again by enveloping him in a kiss. Duo's arms flailed at his sides for a moment, his eyes wide in shock, but then he closed his eyes and wrapped his arms around Wufei. Wufei released him and Duo surprised Wufei in return by initiating his own kiss. Finally, they parted, staring at each other with bright eyes and wide smiles.  
  
"Merry Christmas, Duo."  
  
"Merry Christmas to you too, Wufei."  
  
~FIN~  
  
A/N: Okay, sorry the end got kind of flakey. I was running out of ideas and kind of just wanted to end the fic as quick as possible. X__X; Also, the kissing scene was probably bad but I'm an inexperienced kisser so I don't know the passions of it or whatever. XP 


End file.
